Jeffrey Brenzel: The Essential Value of a Classic Education

Give yourself the gift of knowledge — subscribe to Big Think Edge: http://bit.ly/bigthinkedge

If you're interested in licensing this or any other Big Think clip for commercial or private use, contact our licensing partner Executive Interviews: https://www.executiveinterview....s.biz/rightsholders/

Standing on the Shoulders of Giants: The Essential Value of a Classic Education.

JEFFREY BRENZEL, Philosopher, Dean of Undergraduate Admissions at Yale University

Dean Brenzel argues that not only can reading the great classics like Plato's Republic and Dante's Inferno enrich your education, it can actually make your life better. Pointing out that we can't possibly read all of the books in the world, Brenzel makes a case for reading the right books the right way in order to get the most intellectual bang for your reading buck. Which books qualify as the "right" books is one of the most controversial subjects in academia, and Brenzel outlines the five key characteristics that every great book must fulfill in order to make that coveted list.

The Floating University
Originally released September 2011.

Additional Lectures:
Michio Kaku: The Universe in a Nutshell
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0NbBjNiw4tk

Joel Cohen: An Introduction to Demography (Malthus Miffed: Are People the Problem?)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2vr44C_G0-o

Steven Pinker: Linguistics as a Window to Understanding the Brain http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q-B_ONJIEcE

Leon Botstein: Art Now (Aesthetics Across Music, Painting, Architecture, Movies, and More.)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j6F-sHhmfrY

Tamar Gendler: An Introduction to the Philosophy of Politics and Economics
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mm8asJxdcds

Nicholas Christakis: The Sociological Science Behind Social Networks and Social Influence
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wadBvDPeE4E

Paul Bloom: The Psychology of Everything: What Compassion, Racism, and Sex tell us about Human Nature
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=328wX2x_s5g

Saul Levmore: Monopolies as an Introduction to Economics
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FK2qHyF-8u8

Lawrence Summers: Decoding the DNA of Education in Search of Actual Knowledge
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C6SY6N1iMcU

Douglas Melton: Is Biomedical Research Really Close to Curing Anything?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y95hT-koAC8

William Ackman: Everything You Need to Know About Finance and Investing in Under an Hour
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WEDIj9JBTC8